Category Archives: NAHB

The Annual Spring Parade of Homes is on the last week in the Wichita Metro Area. There are some great homes out there. Lots of amenities to consider. Everyone has their own lifestyle and looks for a floor plan to fit. They all have their sense of taste and can look at the colors, finishes and visual effects.

Every builder says they build an energy efficient home. Energy Efficiency is built in behind the walls. It is usually not seen. Energy Efficiency is about people and how they install the items that create the efficiency. The specific items are less important then the way they are installed. Generally, the manufacturers install instructions must be followed.

Wichita – Sedgwick County has not adopted any code provisions for energy efficiency in new homes. It may be legal to build a home with no insulation, but is that a wise decision? No one thinks so. So how much is enough and is it installed correctly? In this area we are reliant on the free enterprise approach energy efficiency in new homes.

Phoenix, AZ has an energy code, yet the free enterprise market based system has upped the game for buyers. Here is a recent article in the Phoenix Newspaper about how a home buyer can see what is behind the walls.

When it comes to getting an accurate appraisal for a high-performance home, it’s easier and more practical to take the right steps up front than to try to get a low appraisal revised after the fact.

Appraisal expert Sandra Adromatis, a featured speaker at the High Performance Building Zone during the recent International Builders’ Show, offered advice for securing an accurate appraisal of a high-performance home.

First and most important is documentation, especially of features behind the walls and other items that aren’t immediately obvious.

Ms. Adomatis also presented at the RESNET Conference after the IBS Show. I furnish the Energy portion of the AI Energy Efficient and Green Addendum for every new home rating I do for a builder. If you would like to see one or see how it would help your building plans, give me a call.

As Millennials begin to enter the home buying market in larger numbers, homes will get a little smaller, laundry rooms will be essential, and home technology increasingly prevalent, said panelists during an International Builders’ Show press conference on home trends and Millennials’ home preferences last week.

NAHB Assistant VP of Research Rose Quint predicted that the growing numbers of first-time buyers will drive down home size in 2015. Three million new jobs were created in 2014, 700,000 more than the previous year “and the most since 1999,” Quint said. At the same time, regulators have reduced downpayment requirements for first-time buyers from 5% to 3% and home prices have seen only moderate growth.

“All these events lead me to believe that more people will come into the market, and as younger, first-time buyers, they will demand smaller, more affordable homes,” Quint said. “Builders will build whatever demand calls out for.”

Quint also unveiled the results of two surveys: one asking home builders what features they are most likely to include in a typical new home this year, and one asking Millennials what features are most likely to affect their home buying decisions.

Of the Top 10 features mentioned by home builders, four have to do with energy efficiency: Low-E windows, Energy Star-rated appliances and windows and programmable thermostats. The top features: master bedroom walk-in closets and a separate laundry room.

Least likely features include high-end outdoor kitchens with plumbing and appliances and two-story foyers and family rooms. “Consumers don’t like them anymore, so builders aren’t going to build them,” Quint said.

When NAHB asked Millennials what features fill their “most-wanted” shopping list, a separate laundry room was clearly on top, with 55% responding that they just wouldn’t buy a new home that didn’t have one.

Storage is also important, with linen closets, a walk-in pantry and garage storage making the Top 10 – along with Energy Star certifications. In fact, this group is willing to pay 2-3% more for energy efficiency as long as they can see a return on their power bills.

If they can’t quite afford that first home, respondents said they’d be happy to sacrifice extra finished space or drive a little farther to work, shops and schools, but are unwilling to compromise with less expensive materials.

A whopping 75% of this generation wants to live in single-family homes, and 66% prefer to live in the suburbs. Only 10% say they want to stay in the central city. Compared to older generations, Millennials are more likely to want to live downtown, but it’s still a small minority share, Quint said.

Panelist Jill Waage, editorial director for home content at Better Homes and Gardens, discussed Millennials’ emphasis on the importance of outdoor living and that generation’s seamless use of technology, and how those two trends play into their home buying and home renovation decisions.

Because they generally don’t have as much ready cash or free time as older home owners, Millennials seek less expensive, low-maintenance choices like a brightly painted front door, strings of garden lights and landscaping that needs less watering and mowing, like succulent plants and larger patios.

They’re also very comfortable with their smartphones and tablets, and increasingly seek ways to control their heating and air-conditioning and security and lighting as well as electronics like televisions and sound systems from their phones. “They want to use their brains for other things, not for remembering whether they adjusted the heat or closed the garage door,” Waage said.

This was released today! The NAHB noted the approval through their Twitter Stream @NAHB on Tuesday! More options to meet the Energy Code! Great way to provide flexibility for all builders. One more reason for adoption of an Energy Code in Wichita/Sedgwick County.

TEXT OF ANNOUNCEMENT:
On October 7, 2013, the International Code Council (ICC) voted to incorporate an optional Energy Rating Index compliance path into the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) at its meeting in Atlantic City.

The ICC action establishes a new voluntary performance compliance path for the 2015 version of the IECC the “Energy Rating Index”. The Energy Rating Index is a numeric score where “100” is equivalent to the 2006 IECC and “0” is equivalent to a net-zero energy home. The current HERS Index Score is compatible to the Energy Rating Index requirements. This means a builder can use a HERS rating to comply with the 2015 IECC.

The adopted new performance path also requires that a builder must meet the mandatory envelope requirements of the 2009 IECC.

The new compliance path was proposed by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Institute of Market Transformation and the Britt/Makela Group.

RESNET backed an amendment that represented a compromise on higher rating scores that was reached between the Leading Builders of America and the cosponsors. This amendment, however, was defeated.

RESNET Executed Director Steve Baden lauded the ICC’s action as a “victory for consumers and builders. Homes complying through this path will be higher performing hence having lower utility bills while at the same time provides more flexibility to builders in meeting the code. The action is also a big step for RESNET and the HERS industry. With this new responsibility RESNET has to step up its game and make a concentrated effort to ensure consistent and accurate HERS Index Scores.”

Much appreciation must be expressed to our partners for their effective leadership. Without the leadership of the by the Natural Resources Defense Council, Leading Builders of America, Institute of Market Transformation and the Brill/Makela Group this would not have been possible. Support from the National Home Builders Association, North American Insulation Manufacturers Association, DOW, Green Building Coalition and the Southwest Energy Efficiency Program was critical as well as the more than 150 RESNET member companies and organizations added their voices in support of this effort.

I receive an email news letter each Friday as a member of Wichita Area Builders Association and NAHB, the local and national Builders Trade Groups. This is titled Monday Morning Briefing. There are usually 8 to 10 concise articles of interest to the residential building industry. NAHB has an outstanding Research Arm. Every time they post something they have researched, I learn something.

Some of these posts are self-promotional. I don’t blame them. They work hard and deserve to put that hard work out for everyone to know about.

In this case, the article that caught my attention relates to work the NAHB has done with other industry trade groups to advance the shared knowledge for builders, buyers, real estate agents, appraisers and others. Everyone in the home sales transaction benefits from common, verified sources of information about specific homes.

Five of the 18 items relate to Energy Efficiency. That is 27%. One more study that shows the importance of Energy Efficiency to Home Buyers. The article is fairly clear there are many more features surveyed that ranked below this, these are the features a builder needs to provide and point out.

The last one lists ‘Insulation higher than required by code’ – Since Wichita/Sedgwick County has not adopted an Energy Code this is up for grabs. Until last year the recommended code for Attic insulation was R-38. Most builders in the area only install R-30 or even less. I’ve had several builders tell me they put R-38 in the attic and when I get to the attic, I see the Insulation Company’s Attic Card showing R-30. One reason that Independent 3rd party Verification is important. This is an important part of a HERS Index on a new home. The current code recommends R-49 in the attic. As energy prices go up, it makes more sense to have additional insulation.

There are two window items of interest. First is the desire for Low E windows. This is a type of coating on 1 side of one of the panes of a double or triple pane window. Which side and which pane it is on is very important. On the wrong pane, the window is designed for Brownsville, TX not Wichita, KS.

Second is the desire for Energy Star certified windows. Window requirements change with the climate. If you are in Minnesota, your weather requires a different window specifications than the weather in Kansas. Keep in mind, that Oklahoma is a different climate for certification than Kansas. I have found a number of new homes in Wichita, that are built with Energy Star windows, if you are in Oklahoma.

Finally, a Lo-E coating on the window helps in the summer time with solar heat gain. Lo-E is part of the recipe for building a window. Residential windows are certified to Independent Standards and should carry an NFRC Sticker. Again, checking the NFRC sticker for specifications is part of the Independent Third Party Verification that is part of the HERS Index.

Ask to see the HERS Rating on all new homes you look at. If there is not a HERS Index, ask the Builder to place a rating on their work.